Deepfake Clip of Indian Army Colonel Sofia Qureshi Goes Viral; Fact Check

After the ceasefire under Operation Sindoor, which showcased India’s swift military response to the April 22 terrorist attack in Pahalgam, a video of Indian Army Colonel Sofia Qureshi has begun circulating widely across social media platforms.

The clip shows the officer making an impassioned statement: “I am a Muslim, but not a Pakistani. I am a Muslim, but not a terrorist, and terrorism has no religion.”

I am a Muslim but not a Pakistani I am Muslim but not a terrorist. Terrorists have a religion I am determined to kill every terrorist with my own hands even without asking about religion 🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳💚💚🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏 pic.twitter.com/KbKusItSwK

— Saravanan Sara (@saravanan_34395) May 14, 2025

The caption suggests that Colonel Qureshi made the above statement during a joint press conference held on May 7, 2025, where she and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh briefed the media—in Hindi and in English, respectively —on India’s retaliatory military action under Operation Sindoor.

FACT CHECK

When we took it up and ran through the search on Google, we found that no such statement was ever made by Col Qureshi.  All keyword searches yielded no credible news reports or official transcripts attributing this quote to Colonel Qureshi.

Next, we took out some keyframes from the viral video and the traces led to an official video posted by the News Services Division of All India Radio on YouTube, dated May 7. In the original footage, Qureshi discusses operational details of Operation Sindoor. While the visuals match, the controversial quote is conspicuously absent.

We examined the entire press briefing, which also featured Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and found no instance of Colonel Qureshi uttering the viral phrase being claimed in the video.

When we ran AI/Deepfake Detection tool Resemble.ai, the results were clear. The video had hallmarks of deepfake manipulation, including synthetic audio and manipulated facial syncing. Hence, the soundtrack of the video is deepfake and not real.

Claim: Colonel Sofia Qureshi’s video shows her saying, “I am a Muslim, but not a Pakistani. I am a Muslim, but not a terrorist, and terrorism has no religion.”

Conclusion: Misrepresentation. The viral clip, carefully doctored to mislead the public using the identity of Colonel Sofia Qureshi who did not make the statement attributed to her.

Rating: Misrepresentation —